The animation ended after the Tai Xu Sword Deity dispersed.
[So cool!! So cool!!]
[Poor Li Sushang got toyed with by the Immortal.]
[Even if the Immortal pulled a fast one, as the saying goes, "all's fair in war"—Li Sushang was just too naïve, can't blame the Immortal. (doge)] ɪꜰ ʏᴏᴜ ᴡᴀɴᴛ ᴛᴏ ʀᴇᴀᴅ ᴍᴏʀᴇ ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀs, ᴘʟᴇᴀsᴇ ᴠɪsɪᴛ NovᴇlFɪre.nᴇt
While players were still immersed in that breathtaking duel, the story pressed on.
Li Sushang was shocked that Fu Hua caught the supposedly unstoppable, inescapable Tai Xu Sword Deity without even a scratch.
She kept praising Grandmaster Fu Hua, calling her a true living Immortal of this age.
"I've exhausted all my qi."
Take note—this will be important later.
Without this battle, no one would have known just how overflowing with "martial virtue" the Tai Xu Sword Sectwas.
Fu Hua, hearing Li Sushang's praise, responded with relentless humility.
The two of them exchanged rounds of mutual flattery.
Finally, now that their conditions were evenly matched, they began the final duel—a showdown between disciples of the Tai Xu Sect.
The BGM switched to Feather of Millennium, and Fu Hua shifted into her Azure Ink form.
"The inheritor of Tai Xu Sword Qi… is not the Crimson Azure Immortal, nor the founder of the Tai Xu Sword Sect."
Fu Hua took her stance, reaching one hand forward. "This is the greatest respect I, Fu Hua, can show you in this 'sparring match.'"
Li Sushang let out a sudden chuckle—oddly timed, but not at all mocking. Just a burst of glee she couldn't suppress.
"Marvelous, marvelous! Fu Hua… please."
This scene of chivalry made players from the Flower Kingdom widen their eyes in delight.
"Li Sushang, senior disciple of Supreme Freedom Sect, requests your guidance!"
With that, Li Sushang summoned a greatsword, freezing time.
Players had to control Fu Hua to shatter the greatsword.
Once it broke, the battlefield instantly turned a water-blue hue.
"Heaven births water, in gratitude it takes form."
Li Sushang followed up with a second technique.
Countless long swords appeared in the field, but only one bore Li Sushang's silhouette. Players had to find and defeat the shadowed sword.
"Li Sushang's battlefield effects are absolutely stunning," Elysia couldn't help praising while playing. "So full of immortal grace."
[True wuxia has entered Honkai (foggy).]
[This boss fight visual design is blowing me away.]
[Jade Knight: Lunar Trace? I feel like I've seen that name before.]
[If I remember right, when Himeko went to retrieve Crimson Armor, that set was displayed beside her.]
[Wait, the foreshadowing was that early!?]
Elysia defeated one of Li Sushang's shadows as Fu Hua.
The battlefield transitioned back to the observation platform.
The real Li Sushang resumed battle with more back-and-forth—and a few more stage changes.
Elysia depleted Li Sushang's HP bar.
The game shifted back into story mode.
"I only have strength left for one last sword strike, Fu Hua," said Li Sushang.
Fu Hua believed her. "But I'm sorry. I cannot go all out."
"Ah… I understand." Li Sushang nodded. "You still wish to chase after that white-haired girl."
"Very well. This… will be the final sword!"
Another animation played.
Players couldn't help but pause in awe.
MiHoYo was really going all in—animation after animation, it was almost overwhelming.
Elysia, however, wasn't thinking too much. She was simply focused, eyes glued to the screen.
Fu Hua clenched her fists and entered her family's martial stance, while Li Sushang held her sword one-handed, blade tip to the ground, unmoving.
Both observed the tiniest shifts in the other's posture, every glance, every twitch of a muscle—nothing could be missed.
Because any one of those might determine the outcome of this duel.
Suddenly, the light around them dimmed. It was as if all the radiance of heaven and earth had gathered upon the two of them.
And in a flash, closed the distance.
This was the final blow—the strike that would decide victory or defeat.
Their blades clashed and they crossed paths.
Like a torrent of sword qi rushing to its end, the sound of it gradually faded away.
The two stood still in silence—until one of them spoke, even they could not be sure of the result.
All players subconsciously held their breath at once.
"...You didn't just have one last sword in you, did you."
What do you mean she didn't just have one last sword?
Didn't Li Sushang just say she had only one sword of strength left?
"...Yes. It's just… I gave it everything I had, while Master Chiwen held back."
"In other words, I overestimated myself."
"No, no, Grandmaster. If it were a matter of one sword alone, I lost. Your skill surpasses mine. The reason the battle ended this way... was because it was two versus one."
As she said this, at the moment of their final clash, a second sword had manifested before her.
Didn't she say her qi was depleted? That it was her last sword?
"...You've won." Fu Hua collapsed.
Li Sushang let out a soft sigh. The Divine Key in her hand shattered piece by piece. Her last ounce of strength drained away. She staggered—then fell to the ground.
"What Grandmaster sought to accomplish... she's done it after all."
Seeing both of them lying on the ground in-game left players a little dazed.
They replayed the entire sequence in their minds, finally piecing it together.
The comment feed lit up instantly.
[This plot has so many twists, I'm stunned.]
[All I can say now: Tai Xu's fraud legacy has been passed down. (fog)]
["Qi Depleted," "One Sword Left," "Final Sword"—all of it was BS.]
[Li Sushang: Thanks to Grandmaster, I've now learned Tai Xu Sect's new ultimate technique—'All's fair in war!']
[Upper line: The old master scammed the youth with a big fakeout
Lower line: The youth repaid the master with twin blades and a sneak attack
Side title: The Tai Xu Sword SectOverflows with Martial Integrity!]
Looking at the two lying on the ground, players just couldn't suppress their desire to roast.
The ancient one scams first, the junior immediately imitates.
[The Tai Xu Sword Sectshould just rename itself the Grand Void Sect—lacking just a bit of martial virtue.]
[Grand Void Sect? Grand Void Sect… brilliant! Absolutely brilliant!]
Because of how indescribably wild the whole sequence was—
The audience dove into an intense discussion on the "overflowing martial virtue" of the Tai Xu Sect.